ACLU of Alaska
Lauds State Decision to Keep Social Security Numbers Private
May 4, 2005
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: akclu@akclu.org
ANCHORAGE -The American Civil Liberties Union of Alaska today praised a decision by the Child Support Services Division of the Alaska Department of Revenue to keep Social Security Numbers private. The state announced its decision in a letter sent in response to an ACLU inquiry on behalf of a commercial fisherman from Southeast Alaska.
"We are extremely pleased that the state agrees with our position that Social Security Numbers should be kept confidential by government agencies," said Michael W. Macleod-Ball, Executive Director of the ACLU of Alaska. "While it may be too late for the current round of state enforcement efforts, we are delighted at the state’s promise to stop using private Social Security Numbers in coming years as identifiers for commercial fishermen subject to withholding."
The ACLU of Alaska filed its request with the state on behalf of a commercial fisherman who received a list of names of individuals subject to child support enforcement orders. State law permits the agency to require employers to withhold money from compensation to satisfy the amount owed under the order. The commercial fisherman does not employ others and was concerned that his receipt of the list from the state constituted a breach of confidentiality. He called the ACLU to report the use of the private information.
Over the last year, Jason Brandeis, staff attorney for the ACLU of Alaska, exchanged correspondence with the Child Support Services Division of the state’s Department of Revenue. In his research, Brandeis learned that Social Security Numbers were routinely included in the list of names provided to large commercial fishing employers, but that employers often didn’t need the numbers to be able to figure out if they had an employee subject to one of the withholding orders.
"The problem," Brandeis said, "is that the law only permits the release of such numbers when it’s necessary to establish a child support obligation or to collect support payments. And because each fisherman has a unique commercial fishing permit number, use of the Social Security Number isn’t necessary to carry out the program." Brandeis explained that the state had used Social Security Numbers to distinguish between people sharing the same name. Because each fisherman has a unique fishing permit number, listing of confidential Social Security Numbers is not necessary to the administration of child support enforcement. The state agreed and decided to use the fishing permit numbers in future years.
"We are proud that one of our supporters brought this to our attention and that we were able to preserve another little bit of individual privacy as a result," Macleod-Ball said. "We also praise the Department of Revenue, and in particular the Child Support Services Division, for taking the issue seriously and changing its policy promptly in response to our letter. The right to privacy is a fundamental constitutional right under federal and state law - we need to stay vigilant and make sure that infringements on this right do not go unchallenged."
The ACLU of Alaska Foundation is a non-profit charitable organization dedicated to preserving individual freedoms assured under the U.S. Bill of Rights and the Alaska Constitution, primarily through litigation and public education programs. It provides legal services without charge to clients throughout the state.
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